Marin enjoys a break before the next big storm on Sunday

Marin enjoyed a welcome respite between storms for most of Saturday, using the break in the weather to clean up leaves and branches, get in some holiday shopping and just get out of the house before the next major blast of rain and wind predicted to slam the county on Sunday.

The National Weather Service said Marin could expect showers to be light Saturday evening, picking up overnight and loading the already saturated ground with another 2.5 to 4 inches of heavy rainfall through Sunday morning and into the afternoon.

"There are concerns about potential mudslides in the coastal hills and mountains of Marin," National Weather Service forecaster Austin Cross said.

The third in this series of storms is also expected to pack southwest winds from 20 to 30 mph, with gusts up to about 45 mph, but for a shorter period than on Friday, when trees were knocked down and power was out all over the county.

There may not have been much sun on Saturday, but there wasn't much rain either, at least during the day, and that was a relief.

"We're taking advantage of the break in the weather," said David Mecham, who was buying a Christmas tree with his family at the Ponzini lot at the Marin Civic Center in San Rafael.

The Mechams, visiting from Sacramento while their daughter performed in a ballet at Marin Center, were among a crush of tree buyers at the Ponzini lot, one of the largest in the county.

"We've been slammed all day," said lot manager Rick Sack as families paid for trees, tiptoed through the mud and tied them to the roofs of their cars. "As soon as the weather's nicer, they all come in," Sack said. "We can't go fast enough."

Marin and the North Bay should get another break on Monday before the next round of bad weather on track to hit on Tuesday night.

"After that it looks like we get a more prolonged break," forecaster Cross said.

San Rafael got another 1.77 inches in the 24 hours ending Saturday evening, but most of that was in the early morning hours, raising the storm total to 4.69 inches. The wet earth may have contributed to a tree falling across Lucas Valley Road and tangling into power lines, causing the road to be closed at the 7000 block for six hours, from 11 a.m. to about 5 p.m. Some homes in the area were without power, the Marin Sheriff's Department reported.

Other rainfall totals, in inches, through Saturday evening — Woodacre, 4.59, Lucas Valley, 3.05, Olema Valley, 3.39, and the wettest part of the county, Kentfield, 4.93.